5th Week in Ordinary Time 2025 - Wednesday - Achieving inner integrity

 There appears to be a bit of a contradiction in our readings today. In the first reading, for eating the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, God say, the consequence is death: “the moment you eat from it you are surely doomed to die”.

On the other hand, the Lord Jesus, speaking to a crowd says that “nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person”. Nothing you eat can corrupt your soul.

How do we reconcile what God says in the first reading and what he says in the Gospel? Well, in the first reading, it was not the fruit itself that was somehow spiritually poisonous. It was not as if this was some mystical fruit that had the power to corrupt man’s nature. What was spiritually deadly, wasn’t the fruit, rather, what was spiritually deadly was the decision to disobey God. And that decision is made in the soul, from within.

As the Lord explains in the Gospel, “from within the man, from his heart, come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly. All these evils come from within and they defile.”

Our decisions--—our deliberate actions—matter. Our use of our free will has spiritual consequences. When we use our free will to act in accordance with the divine will of God, we grow in virtue—we habituate ourselves to what is good—to goodness itself.  The Catechism says, “The virtuous person tends toward the good with all his sensory and spiritual powers; he pursues the good and chooses it in concrete actions. The goal of a virtuous life is to become like God…The virtuous man is he who freely practices the good. The moral virtues are acquired by human effort. They are the fruit and seed of morally good acts; they dispose all the powers of the human being for communion with divine love.(CCC 1803-1804)”

On the other hand, when we misuse our freewill to act in discord with the divine will, contrary to the purpose for which we were made, our souls are corrupted—we are habituated toward what is harmful to our minds, bodies, heart and soul. Choosing evil allows the powers of death to continue to pervert our natures meant for divine life. 

Even with the help of grace, the example of the saints, the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, our life is a constant battle. One of the great lines out of Vatican II reminds us, “Finding himself in the midst of the battlefield man has to struggle to do what is right, and it is at great cost to himself, and aided by God’s grace, that he succeeds in achieving his own inner integrity.”

But inner integrity and sanctity can be achieved through effort, through faithfulness, through love. May we allow the victory of Christ to achieve victory in us today, in our decisions, our deliberate actions, in our struggle to do what is right, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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With confidence in God’s grace and a desire to grow in virtue, we bring our prayers before the Lord.

For the Church: That she may faithfully teach and inspire all people to choose good over evil, and to live in accord with God’s divine will.

For those in positions of leadership—civil, religious, and community leaders:

That they may govern and guide with integrity, promoting what is just and right, and resisting the corruption of selfish or sinful motives.

For all who struggle with temptation or with persistent sins: That they may be strengthened by God’s grace and the support of the Christian community, and find the courage to choose the path of virtue.

For those who have been hurt by their own or others’ misuse of free will: That God’s healing mercy will restore them, renew their hope, and guide them toward forgiveness and reconciliation.

For those who suffer in body, mind, or spirit: That the Lord will bring them comfort, and that our loving actions may be a sign of God’s care and compassion in their lives.

For our beloved dead: That they may be granted eternal rest and behold the face of God in the heavenly kingdom.

Merciful Father, you have given us the freedom to choose good and the grace to follow your will. Hear the prayers we offer you this day and help us to grow in holiness. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

25th Week in Ordinary Time 2024 - Wednesday - Humbling seeking what we truly need

 There is a common theme in our readings today. It was subtle in the Old Testament reading, and only slightly more explicit in the Gospel. It involves trust, trusting in God.

In the reading from Proverbs, this humble soul makes a heartfelt prayer to God requesting only the things he believes are essential for living a righteous and fulfilling life: “Put falsehood and lying far from me, give me neither poverty nor riches; provide me only with the food I need, lest, being full, I deny you.” Notice the two things he asks for.

The first request is for personal integrity. The speaker asks God to keep dishonesty and deceit away from him. This reflects a desire to live truthfully, both in words and actions, avoiding the moral corruption that comes with lying. 

Dishonesty erodes our integrity. Lying often involves shifting blame or avoiding accountability, which prevents learning from mistakes. It leads to isolation—becomes no one trusts a liar. Falsehood brings separation from God—who is Truth itself. Small lies can lead to larger deceptions, gradually desensitizing individuals to wrongdoing. Once lying is rationalized, it becomes easier and easier to justify larger sins. This humble request to be kept from falsehood is fundamental to living a blessed life. 

The second request is about material wealth. The prayer asks for a balanced provision—neither extreme wealth nor extreme poverty. Each of those extremes come with their own sets of temptations and challenges. Rather, the prayer asks for just enough for sustenance. This is akin to asking God for our “daily bread” as Jesus taught his disciples in the Lord’s prayer.  

Both requests—the request for integrity and for daily bread—entail a trust that the Lord will provide what he needs.

In the Gospel, Jesus sends out the twelve with just enough for their mission. And notice, he sends them out to preach and cure and cast out demons, without any form of material support: without food, without money, or even a change of clothes.  But he did equip them spiritually for their mission. Having spent powerful, life changing time with Jesus—hearing his teaching, witnessing his divine authority in the miracles he performed, he equipped them with Faith and the Word of God. 

Similarly, in pursuing our vocation to holiness and our share in the mission of the Church —in living a blessed life on earth that leads to beatitude in heaven—we do well to seek only what we truly need: the grace of living honest humble lives, the grace to trust that the Lord equips us sufficiently for the task before us. 

May we entrust our needs to the Lord today—for all that we truly require for holiness and for heaven, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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That all members of the Church may strive for personal integrity and holiness, living truthfully in word and deed.

That those in positions of authority may govern with honesty and justice, rejecting deceit, corruption, and working always for the common good.

That those experiencing poverty or abundance may avoid the temptations associated with their circumstances, and that we may seek only what we truly need, trusting that the Lord equips us sufficiently for our mission and supporting one another in faith.

That those who are burdened by illness or hardship may find comfort in God's provision and the support of the faithful community.

That the departed may be received into God's eternal embrace, especially…

Heavenly Father, we entrust our needs to You, confident in Your loving providence. Hear our petitions and grant us what we truly need. Through Christ our Lord.

August 24 2022 - St. Bartholomew - Without duplicity

 Bartholomew, also known as Nathanael, was a pious Jew who lived in daily expectation of the coming of the messiah. His home was at Cana. And even though Cana was twelve miles away from the Sea of Galilee, it is likely that Bartholomew, was a fisherman. For when St. Peter stood on the Sea of Tiberias after the Resurrection and announced he was going fishing, Bartholomew called out with the other apostles, “we are going with you”.

Bartholomew was evidently a close friend of Phillip. The two of them seemed to be actively looking for the Messiah, and had initially thought that John the Baptist was the Messiah. But after Philip had encountered Jesus at Galilee, Philip, as we heard in the Gospel today, runs to announce to his friend Bartholomew, that it wasn’t John, but Jesus, son of Joseph, from Nazareth, who was the fulfillment of the law and the prophets 

We can only wonder what Bartholomew meant when he said, “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Nazareth was just a couple miles—just nine miles—from Bartholomew’s hometown of Cana. Perhaps he was speaking with a bit of mockery so often found between two neighboring villages. But his small-town prejudices did not keep Bartholomew from venturing with Philip to see Jesus.

And in this encounter, Jesus himself gives us an insight into St. Bartholomew’s character and faith, “there is no duplicity in him”. The Lord peered into his heart and found him to be a man of impeccable honesty, forthright, open, plainspoken, straightforward, upfront, earnest, innocent, and unpretentious. “Happy are those to whom the Lord imputes no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit” says Psalm 32.

All Christians are to be without deceit, without duplicity. We are to live for the Lord and die for the Lord. We cannot serve two masters. 

After the resurrection, the apostle Bartholomew labored in the master’s vineyard, spreading the Gospel throughout the Iranian Empire and along the Persian Gulf. Around the year 69 he was martyred, skinned alive and crucified. He is sometimes depicted in Sacred Art, holding a knife, which was used to flay him, and sometimes even carrying his skin over his arm, like in Michaelangelo’s Last Judgment in the Sistine Chapel. Due to the nature of his martyrdom, Bartholomew is patron saint of those with skin diseases, dermotologists, leather workers, tanners, and butchers.

Honesty, guilelessness, is not a popular trait. Many people prefer comfortable lies. Many act one way in public and another in private. Some live double-lives. But Christians are to be people of Truth, for our Lord says, “I am the Truth” honestly acknowledging our faults and vices and sins, that they may be healed. We are to speak the truth and live the truth in love for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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May we join the Holy Apostles in our prayer for the world and the Church.

As the Apostles witnessed to the Resurrection of the Lord, may we be his witnesses to the farthest corners of the world.

For the bishops, the successors of the apostles: That they may be courageous in stirring up the flame of faith and defending the Church from error.

For all of the sick and suffering, especially victims of skin diseases, natural disaster, poverty, and addiction, may they be comforted and supported by God’s healing love. We pray to the Lord.

For all who long to see the face of the Father, for all our departed loved ones and all of the souls in purgatory, and for N. for whom this Mass is offered. We pray to the Lord.

Incline your merciful ear to our prayers, we ask, O Lord, and listen in kindness to the supplications of those who call on you. Through Christ our Lord